As a result of their training, physicians are familiar with examining and diagnosing patients using all their senses, inter alia by sensing (palpation). With the diagnosis of radiological images (ultrasound, x-ray, CT, MR, SPECT, PET, etc.) tactile palpatory contact with the patient is in most cases lacking as a further source of information for the findings.
In medicine, examining the body by way of feeling with the fingers or hands is referred to as palpation. Palpation is one of the oldest methods of diagnosis and forms part of a physical examination, just like inspection, auscultation and percussion. Assessed here are the consistency, elasticity, mobility, sensitivity to pain and the size of the organs or body structure to be examined.
Palpation, as it is known, can take place using one or a number of fingers and the palm of the hand. With anatomical structures, which do not lie directly below the skin, clinical diagnostics using palpation is difficult or impossible. Similarly, palpation is hampered in the case of very overweight patients.
Until now, the palpatory findings were not included in the findings of radiological image findings.
The clinical diagnostics of anatomic structures, which are not accessible for palpation, takes place on the basis of translations of CT or MR data into visual information. Radiologists must learn to interpret visual information during years of training.